What The Handmaid’s Tale Reveals About Prada A/W 25

The Prada A/W 25 womenswear show began with a striking sequence: black dress, black dress, black dress, and then—red dress. The bold appearance of scarlet, a colour as much associated with passion as socialism, carries a deep history. It evokes notions of courage, sacrifice, blood, and war, but it’s also a symbol of defiance. In The Handmaid’s Tale, June reflects, ‘Strange to finally be invisible. One of the reasons they chose red was the opposite. We’re easy to catch because we’re easy to see. Like blood on snow.’

Co-creative directors Miuccia Prada and Raf Simons presented a show steeped in questions about femininity today with silhouettes that bore an uncanny resemblance to the costume design of Hulu’s The Handmaids Tale. In the dystopian drama, fashion becomes a tool of oppression, forcing fertile women like June to visibly mark their place in society; the red uniform a symbol of servitude and the fertility of the handmaids. 

With exaggerated proportions, the garments obscure any trace of the wearer's natural form—their waists and bosoms impossible to discern. Skirts fall to the knee, deliberately avoiding even the faintest suggestion of allure. Yet, despite this modesty, the designs remain unmistakably feminine. The creased fabric, evocative of Amish attire, hints at the repetitive labour that defines their existence. In Gilead society’s eyes, these women are always sexualised—red signifying fertility, childbearing, and the inescapable weight of their reproductive roles.

This season, Prada’s uniform echoes this dichotomy, highlighting the complex relationship between patriarchal societies and femininity. Barely there make up and protruding collar bones are the only parts of the body on display in wide neck dresses. The oversized proportions of dresses, skirts, and coats evoke monastic habits—civilian uniforms of quiet defiance.

The styling leans into the power of ambiguity, shrouding the models in mystery. Their body shapes are obscured, transforming them into enigmatic phantoms, untethered from the male gaze. Yet, Prada masterfully balances tradition and subversion. Tousled, bedhead hair suggests the aftermath of a raucous night, while delicate totems of femininity—pearls, brooches, charms—are pinned to knitwear or hang dishevelledly around necks, as if hastily reassembled.

Here, blending in is a conscious act. The collection doesn’t just embrace conformity—it weaponises it, turning uniformity into quiet rebellion. It conjures the image of how those in power expect women to dress—rendering them beyond reproach, untouchable. Yet, within this carefully crafted façade, space is carved out for their inner worlds to exist, shielded from public scrutiny. Their business remains their own. And because it’s Prada, this obscurity—this act of choice—is made visually captivating.

Armed with a degree in political science, a young Prada was infamously a member of the communist party while an active participant in the women's rights movement of the 70s. With routine plays on ideas of austerity the aesthetic sensibilities of this time have never strayed far from her work. So it isn’t out of the realm of possibility that Margaret Atwood’s dystopian masterpiece would have influenced this season. Backstage after the show she told press, ‘It is not my job to be political, but whenever you open a newspaper, oh my God! My job is to think about what women can wear. About what kind of femininity makes sense in a moment like this.’

Masterfully attuned to our socio-political realities, where personal autonomy is increasingly politicised, Prada’s latest collection resonates with the tensions of our time. Brand ambassador Hunter Schafer recently spoke out on Instagram about receiving a misgendered passport – bearing consequences of the Donald Trump signed executive order declaring the government now only recognises two genders. Politically powerful figures like Elon Musk routinely flag declining birth rates in the backdrop of shrinking abortion rights in the United States. In India, the mishandling of marital rape laws and in Iran a further erosion of women's rights. 

This wave of state issued asceticism coming from men in power has amplified in recent years as conservatism takes hold globally. Threatening to revert women’s (let alone trans) rights to a bygone era, where control over bodies was dictated by patriarchal rule. Prada’s collection responds to this climate with a uniform that oscillates between submission and subversion—a commentary on the structures that seek to contain femininity. 

This season Prada asked the loaded question, ‘What does femininity mean today?’ We should keep the answers to ourselves for now. Keep it under wraps. Put a bow on it so men will never think to look under the covers. Tellingly, backstage after the show Simons said, 'Liberation always comes with risk-taking.’